The Pretender - One Shots
by NeverBeyondRedemption
Summary: A series of little extras that I wrote alongside The Pretender. Must read the full fic first.
1. Chapter 1

Gellert didn't know how many days had passed since he'd lost his duel to his brother. He looked the same as he had that day, the cursed youth still to wear off. For all he knew it would be another century before he was finally allowed to pass on. He pulled at his hair with grubby fingers, wishing again for a way to cut it as it fell into his eyes.

He knew that it was summer by the temperature, in winter his cell froze as deeply as the mountain on which his fortress was built. Now though, he could sit on his cot in relative comfort and watch the stars as the drifted across the sky each night. Oh, how he wished that he could spend half his life asleep, rather than puzzling over half forgotten projects.

Momentarily, the scene changed and he saw a dusty, bloody girl running up the stairs. His innate senses told him that this was a vision of the present and he wondered what this visitor could possibly want. The last visitor had made sense, a twisted man that craved power but didn't understand the subtleties of getting it. He'd come looking for the power that Gellert had once wielded.

He stood as he heard the faint sounds of footsteps on the carpets outside, if he hadn't known that she was coming, he would have missed it. She paused before the doorway before bursting in, light glowing from a raised wand. The young witch paused, taking in his cell. He noted her surprise as she saw him but she took it within her stride, clearly recognising his other distinguishing features.

She had clearly just been in battle, stone dust coated her from head to toe, mixing with blood from multiple small wounds to create brownish smears across her skin. Inexplicably, her skirt was missing and the thick blue hose that she wore was smeared in thick green slime.

So she knew him, and she'd come here looking for him.

That was strange, her aura was bright with love and potential, he imagined she would have been one of Albus' favourites if he'd ever taught her. Yet she'd come looking for him. Strange indeed.

'Who are you?' He asked, and she frowned slightly.

'Grindelwald?' She asked in return. She was in the position of power here and she knew it. Most people were cowed by him even when he was in a cell. The cowering American MACUSA had been almost amusing, at least the Brits used dementors.

'I am.' He finally admitted, and she looked relieved. He pondered her odd reaction before asking her to identify herself again.

This time she did, calling herself Hermione and asking for his assistance to defeat the dark wizard that had come to him for information earlier. He almost laughed, wondering how desperate they must be to consider him as a better alternative to this "Voldemort".

'Very well,' He agreed, lounging back against the window as he pondered how far he could push the young witch. 'but I want my freedom.'

She laughed at him, then told him that she was not a fool. She offered him clean clothes, a wash and a bed. He considered negotiating for access to books as part of the deal. Information for some comfort wouldn't be too bad an exchange. He swiped at his long hair again. Then something else occurred to him, something he'd wanted for the past twenty years. Albus had cried as he'd locked him in here, Gellert, consumed by the rush of dark magic, had laughed at his pain.

Maybe, this soldier of the light would be able to organise a second meeting between them, one where Gellert could apologise for those truths that became suddenly clear after years of deprivation from the power that had clouded his moral compass. He knew that Dumbledore would be fighting this new dark wizard, he always had been one to abhor evil and protect the innocent.

He didn't realise that he must have spoken some of that aloud, because the witch was looking at him as if waiting for him to make a point. He searched his memory, recalling something about missing dark magic and missing Albus.

'I will help you, in exchange for an audience with my brother.' He told her, stepping up close to the bars so that he could look into her eyes, trying to convey his sincerity. He knew that this would be his last chance, Albus had not performed the ritual he had. Albus would never dream of doing something so twisted.

Sorrow flooded her features at his words and he knew before she said it what she would say. He stumbled backwards, Albus couldn't die, he was the beacon of light, an incredibly powerful wizard and master of the Elder Wand. It wasn't possible. But this young witch, with her heart and mind too open to possibly lie to him, had told him he was dead.

Fury unfolded as she told him how he'd been protecting his beloved students when he'd been assassinated by Voldemort's minions and he leapt forwards, shaking the bard between them and demanding to be let out. The young witch scrambled backwards out of his reach and he forced himself to calm down. She was young and easily frightened but he needed her now if he was to punish this pretender that dared to kill his brother without even an honourable fight.

'On my magic, my wand is yours if it means destroying the man that killed my brother.' He swore without hesitation. He had nothing to lose and if at the end of all this, she tore away his magic, maybe it would finally end his cursed life.

Fortunately, the witch seemed to understand the implications of the oath and tapped her wand to the locks. Magic rushed back to welcome him as the wards came down for the first time in a century and he revelled in its warm embrace. He didn't get to enjoy his reunion for long though as the witch stepped into the open doorway, holding out her wrist for him to take the oath, her wand pointed at him.

He reached out his hand, taking her wrist and did the same with his magic, noting how her magic shield away from his. She really was as light and innocent as they came. He repeated his oath, grimacing as a bright shackle manifested around his wrist before the glow sank into his skin.

She jumped away from him, and hurried off down the corridor, calling out about there not being much time. He paused and flexed his fingers, magic rushed through him, hinting at potential and teasing him with the whisper it took to produce such a tiny spell. He followed after her, guiding her down several shorter routes and down to the front door. She used the time to tell him about how they were engaged in a battle for Hogwarts, (Albus's school!) and how they had discovered the Voldemort had used a piece of dark magic to make himself invincible. He quickly established that today he would be the distraction until they could figure out this dark magic and kill the pretender for good.

The girl apparated them straight into the middle of a duel. He cursed and threw them both behind a fallen slab of stone for cover, taking in the two duellists from his shelter. One was a willowy, blonde haired girl, possibly even younger than Hermione. Her opponent was a big wizard in black robes with a pumpkin over his head. Hermione then jumped out of their cover to stun and disarm the cloaked wizard.

The blonde haired witch looked them both over with wide blue eyes, making some strange remark about how she'd never hoped to meet him and directing them to "Harry" in the courtyard. She then flounced off to help a boy in school robes as he duelled a messily dressed man with hygiene almost as bad as Gellert felt. With fury, Gellert realised that Voldemort had attacked the school without allowing the students to escape. Something so foolish would almost certainly doom the wizarding world to extinction.

He snatched up the fallen wizard's wand, feeling it fighting against his magic. He swore and grimaced, hammering it into submission with considerable effort as he chased after Hermione through devastated corridors.

She emerged into a courtyard and hid behind a massive metal disk as she took in the situation. Two young wizards duelled a fearsome dark witch, another young witch and her friend were holding their own against a family that Gellert assumed were Malfoys. An older witch that looked slightly familiar was struggling slightly against two masked wizards; he flicked two killing curses in their direction to test his control over the wand. It was little better than average, but it would do for now. He'd have to get a better one at the first opportunity.

He amplified his voice and stepped straight out into the middle of the battle, calling for the younger dark wizard to face him. He was unsurprised when there was no answer, the man had struck him as someone who didn't like to meet his match. White splashed against his shield and he sent a disintegration curse at the offending death eater. He wondered if that curse had gone out of fashion because the death eater didn't even seem to recognise it as it hit him.

He cast several more curses, feeling the magic beginning to flow back through him. It was slightly painful, almost like having pins and needles and it felt sluggish trying to cast. He realised gratefully that it was probably a good thing Voldemort hadn't answered his call as he re-familiarised himself with his own body.

Slowly, with each body disintegrated, burned or banished, it became easier but he was tiring far faster than usual. He felt more that heard his young rescuer coming up behind him and he quickly ordered her to take the left of the bridge. For several minutes it worked well, then he realised that the light witch was using little jinxes – jelly legs, stunners and pumpkin heads. The forest of flailing death eaters funnelled those behind to his side, those that Hermione had defeated were quickly given counter-curses to rejoin the fight.

A ghostly silver animal appeared just as he was forced to let his shield go, Hermione relayed a message to it, which it then carried off as her shield took a barrage of hits. She refocused on her shield charm, letting Grindelwald use his weakening magic to slow their enemies.

A much larger silver animal returned a couple of seconds later, it began to talk to them, but he couldn't spare the messenger a thought as a killing curse blasted it to mist. He dragged the witch out of the barrage of fire, ordering her to apparate them to their safe house. She grabbed his hand and they disappeared from the castle.


	2. Chapter 2

**Grindelwald has a reunion with Dumbledore's portrait.**

 **Set between chapters 18 and 19.**

Gellert crept into his room with a silencing charm on his feet, shutting the door as softly as he could behind him. Hermione and Harry both slept in their rooms and he knew that Hermione was a very light sleeper, so he always tried to make as little noise as possible at night. Besides, he knew she would ask awkward questions about why he was covered in earth – she would hate it if she knew he'd visited several graveyards around the continent to charge up the wards.

He couldn't believe that she actually wanted to live here and the request had sent a rush of happiness searing through her with the intensity of the most powerful dark magics. He'd expected her request to come to nothing, but that evening he'd had a vision of her standing on the balcony outside in fifteen years time. He'd had others since – a wedding in the grounds, the castle blanketed in climbing flowers and knew that Nurmengard would almost certainly be inhabited for at least a couple of years.

Of course, he'd then spent the next half hour worrying over how he could keep the fortress safe in a way that she wouldn't disapprove of too much. The best conclusion that he'd been able to come to was using the same bone magic that currently held the wards intact – hence he'd had to round up several hundred dead bodies.

His body thrummed with dark magic as he finally reached his bed and he lay back to enjoy the power that he had craved whilst in his cell. He looked up, then noticed that for the first time that Albus' portrait was inhabited. The old wizard was snoozing in his frame and as he usually made a rapid exit when Gellert appeared, he must have slept through the dark wizard creeping into his room.

'Albus?' He asked tentatively, and the wizard in the portrait jerked awake. The old wizard flinched when he saw who was addressing him, confirming Gellert's theory that the he'd been avoiding him. 'I can't believe you're here.' Gellert approached so that he was standing in front of the frame, casting a silencing charm on the door so that he wouldn't wake the two young soliders across the corridor. Dumbledore looked like he'd rather be anywhere but here.

'So you escaped.' The light wizard finally said, lifting his eyes to look at his old friend.

'Al... I... I don't...' He didn't know what to say, the hatred and suspicion in Albus' eyes like a knife to the heart. He frowned in frustration, noticing his accent become stronger with his nerves, if only Albus spoke his home tongue, Gellert was sure the words would come easier then. He looked back up at the portrait, expecting angry words and accusations. Instead, the old man just surveyed him calmly.

'You've changed since I saw you last.' The professor said calmly.

'I've had many years to think.' He finally answered, fairly certain that Albus would consider his change a positive one. He nervously wondered if Albus would consider that acts he had just committed to be too similar to the version of him that he'd hated.

'But not enough to realise the error of your ways.' Albus said sadly, 'I should have been brave enough to finish things when I had the chance.'

'No!' He denied fiercely. 'I am not here forever.' Suddenly he remembered that he had his own bone to pick with the older wizard in front of him. 'You though! What were you thinking sending those three on such a dangerous mission with such little preparation? They're barely even of age!' Now Dumbledore looked confused, then realisation dawned, followed by fear.

'You know about Harry's mission then.' The professor said sadly, 'Then all really is lost.'

'Of course it's not; if anything it's saved. I'll be performing the ritual tomorrow to transfer the horcrux in the boy to another host which we can destroy. Whatever plan you may have had to deal with that little hiccup – you certainly hadn't informed them of it.' It felt good to finally vent his fury on Albus for his misguidance of the young wizard. The light wizard just looked flabbergasted.

'You mean to say that you're working with Harry?' He asked, disbelief colouring his tone.

'Of course, I'm surprised they did as well as they did with what little guidance you gave them. You didn't even tell them how to destroy a horcrux! They had to figure that out on their own, she had one paragraph on the topic! Just one!'

'She is a very intelligent girl...'

'Not when it comes to that kind of magic, she's a muggle born – she doesn't even have access to the research materials that cover those topics. You know full well that you only find books on those subjects in old manors. Besides, you know how sick it made you when I talked about dark magic, what would it have done to her to actively research it?' He paused briefly to take a deep, calming breath before the darkness still pulsing through him lashed out at the portrait.

'And so you had a sudden change of heart and escaped just to help them?' Albus asked sarcastically into the silence.

'No, I realised that you were right about five years after you locked me up without magic, once I was less influenced by the darkness. Hermione came to me for help and I agreed because to just stand back would be letting everything you loved and died for be destroyed. I owe you too much already.'

'I never believed it possible.' Albus murmured quietly, 'you were so drawn to the dark arts, I thought you were too far gone, even by the time I first met you.'

'Oh, I think I am not "saved" as you put it. I imagine if Hermione were to wake up now she'd quickly become violently ill.' He joked, pulling up a chair so that he could talk with his old friend more comfortably. It was true, his aura practically roared with darkness after performing so much bone magic in one go and he doubted the effects would even fully fade by the morning.

'Dare I ask what you've been up to?' His friend asked and Gellert allowed a happy smile to cross his face.

'Nurmengard is alive again Albus. You'd hardly believe it is the same place.'

'You're in your castle?' He asked, seemingly interested.

'The whole of the resistance is in my castle. Nurmengard; the last bastion of hope.' He joked, waving his hand as if describing a logo. Albus frowned, so Gellert explained how first Hogwarts, then Grimmauld Place had fallen.

'There are almost two hundred and fifty people here, Albus, most of them children. Yesterday, Hermione asked me if I would mind if people stayed after the war!' He laughed, then noticed the shell shocked expression on Albus' face. 'Of course, she wants a garden so I had to extend the muggle-repelling charm down the mountain a fair way and I've charged the wards to last for over a hundred years. I had a vision a couple of nights ago, Albus. I saw someone having a wedding here, in the grounds in front of the castle.'

'The light suits you, Gellert. I've never seen you so happy.' Albus ventured and he temporarily managed to force the grin off his face before it reappeared of its own volition and he began excitedly sharing all his news with his old friend. The conversation flowed easily, lasting until Gellert heard Hermione and Harry beginning to stir in their rooms.


	3. Chapter 3

Hermione waited until Harry left to take his first watch at the castle gates to corner Grindelwald about the cloak. He was in one of the armchairs across from the window, a book lying open on his lap but unread as he stared out over the valley.

'I need to set down some ground rules.' She said firmly, taking a seat in the chair opposite him. The Dark Wizard's attention snapped to her and she took a deep breath.

'Rules?' He queried, seemingly confused.

'Yes, rules.' Hermione confirmed. Grindelwald sneered.

'You can't try to steal Harry's cloak.' She decided to just be blunt, Grindelwald clearly already knew it was special. If he didn't, he'd figure out as soon as he saw it.

'It's one of the hallows, isn't it?' He confirmed and Hermione narrowed her eyes.

'That's none of your business.'

'Of all the hallows, I was least interested in the cloak.' He seemed unconcerned by how Hermione had just snapped at him. 'Albus always wanted the stone; he believed it would bring back his dead mother. I believed it would make building an army of inferi easier. I wanted the wand, which was everything I always thought it would be. I didn't see any point to the cloak then; why hide when you have an unbeatable wand? I only wanted it to complete the set and become immortal.'

'Of course, I found another way. I found some research by Morgana herself into a ritual to prevent aging and managed to complete the spell, then in the late 1920's I met Nicholas Flamel face to face. He may have been able to live forever but he was still aging, and I bragged about how I would be young forever. Of course, he soon woke me up to the reality of immortality; watching your allies age and die around you.' He was looking out of the window and she could almost see the losses playing out across his features.

'I believe this ritual will have a time frame before it runs out. It draws off a finite source, but I have no idea how long it will last. When it does end... I may age rapidly and die or just resume aging where I had left off. Either way, I have no reason to want immortality any longer.' He finally looked back to her.

'Well, it's still a rule. You're not allowed to steal, or even borrow Harry's cloak without his express permission.' She said decisively. He wouldn't be able to trick her into allowing him to get it. 'You're also not allowed to force Harry into giving it to you or letting you use it.'

'Anything else?' The dark wizard asked as if he was suffering through a long, patronizing experience. Hermione quickly wracked her brain to come up with anything else whilst she had his attention.

'No torture.' She offered, wincing as her voice went up at the end as if she was asking a question.

'Let's leave that one open to debate.' Grindelwald suggested. Then stood up and left before Hermione could stop her outraged spluttering.


	4. Chapter 4

Hermione and Jean had gone out to buy something called takeaway for dinner, leaving Richard alone with Gellert for a while. It fell awkwardly silent as the two women left, and Gellert knew that he had to broach the subjects that Hermione had brushed over before. It wouldn't be right to court a woman without her father's approval with full knowledge of the facts.

'Hermione was hiding something about you.' Richard finally said as Gellert was still figuring out the best way to broach the subject.

'That is true, it's a difficult subject.' He answered. Richard remained silent, forcing the dark wizard to elaborate. 'I was born in 1883 in Germany to an old magical family.' He finally admitted and Richard spluttered.

'Please hear me out. It is a long story that needs to be fully explained before you draw conclusions.' He almost begged, 'I went to Durmstrang until I was 16, then I moved to England for a couple of years. I had ideas to reveal the magical world to the muggles which weren't approved of by those in power but I had forseen the Great War and I believed that wizardkind could stop it.'

'Now that I think about it, your name is familiar. Weren't you like a wizard Hitler?' Richard asked, fear and anger tinting his words.

'Insofar as being German and fighting a war at the same time as him; our ideals and methods were far from similar.' Gellert sneered, a hint of his usual arrogant derision peeking through the contrite mask he wore. Mr. Granger hastily apologised, and Gellert quickly forced himself back into his unthreatening persona.

'After an unfortunate accident during a duel in Britain, I was forced to flee for Europe where I built an army and launched a series of attacks against the statute of secrecy. I admit that I did foray into the dark arts and managed to perform a ritual to extend my youth. Of course, I failed to stop the Great War but it built support for my cause and by then I had forseen the Second War. I was arrested in America in 1926 but I managed to escape in 1927. I openly declared war on the statute of secrecy that year in Paris and I managed to conquer all of wizarding Europe except for Britain. In 1945 Dumbledore defeated me in a duel and imprisoned me in my fortress.'

'I remember you now, Hermione used to talk about that duel.' Richard seemed to be looking for a way out, so Gellert forged on quickly. From here on he became a much more eligible man and he needed to convince Mr. Granger that he could be suitable for his daughter.

'Hermione came to me at the beginning of summer to ask for my help in defeating Voldemort, you see, Dumbledore had been killed and he'd left them with a task that they couldn't complete without someone who understood dark magic. He'd overlooked the effect that researching such things could have on a person's soul and mentality. I'd been alone in prison for over fifty years by then and I'd had a lot of time to think, so when she came I promised to help her.' He took a deep breath, relieved that Richard seemed to be listening now.

He related their story, missing none of the details as Hermione had done. He brushed over his own arrest and subsequent kidnapping, then went into detail over how Hermione had orchestrated his pardon. Then came the difficult part.

'I want you to fully understand who I am, so that you have all the information when I tell you this.' He admitted. He took a deep breath, this was the moment that he could lose the light of his life. 'I have asked Hermione to enter into a formal courtship with me. I know modern society does not believe in such things but it is important to me to seek your blessing.'

Silence reigned over the room as Richard gaped like a fish.

'You're dating Hermione?' He spluttered and Gellert winced at the crude, modern word.

'She is a brilliant witch, powerful and beautiful and intelligent. We challenge each other, we are both academics and we balance one another out in life. She is the light to my darkness, the compassion to my efficiency. I would see her happy and successful in any endeavour she wishes to pursue and I swear that I have the means to provide for her.' He promised and Richard considered him.

'Hermione is a grown woman, it is not for me to judge her decisions. She seems to believe there is something worth chasing in you. You've certainly earned the right to try. But mark my words, wizard or not, if you ever hurt her, I'll hunt you down myself... hey, were your eyes always like that?' Richard's threatening tone changed to curiosity so fast that it almost gave Gellert whiplash and he breathed a sigh of relief as the topic changed to his recently dropped glamour.


End file.
